Find Out Why Duke University Suspended 10 of Its Sororities

It involves a new pledge.

Greek life at Duke University may be about to change in a big way, following the emergency hospitalization of a new sorority member. According to The Chronicle, “Panhellenic sorority activities have been partially suspended after a new member was hospitalized due to an incident with alcohol Tuesday night.” As of Wednesday, the student was in critical condition. The incident has led Duke to reevaluate the nature of Greek Life on campus, and effective Wednesday morning, a suspension was placed on all 10 National Panhellenic Conference sororities at the prestigious school. The school’s official statement about the incident was posted to Twitter yesterday afternoon.

Based on a wave of social media posts, Tuesday night marked Bid Day, when new members are offered invitations to join their respective sororities. Often, Bid Day is a celebration where new members get to know their sisters, and bond as a new member class. According to the National Panhellenic Conference website, “Each College Panhellenic Association shall prohibit the use of alcoholic beverages in membership recruitment and Bid Day activities,” so it’s suspicious that a new member of a sorority was taken to the hospital on Bid Day.

Are you thinking what we’re thinking? An emergency meeting was called Wednesday evening with the presidents of the school’s Panhellenic sororities, the members of the Panhellenic council executive board, and the student affairs staff to “discuss the incident, review Duke’s expectations for all chapters and their members, and ask each chapter to review its activities to ensure compliance,” according to an email sent out by Duke’s director of fraternity and sorority life. Larry Moneta, vice president of student affairs, said, "what happened last night was unacceptable and that steps must be taken to prevent any similar recurrence."